Check Security – Part 1

Posted October 24, 2016

Think about how your house appears to a would-be thief. Is it dark at night? Are any entry points covered by shrubbery or other hiding spots? Are the windows left open? Can you hear a dog barking? Is there an alarm system sign out front? Are valuables left in plain view?
Thieves work on a risk-reward basis. If the reward is small, there is little reason to take a large risk and incur significant hassle. If the reward appears to be huge, they are more motivated to find a way to get the job done.
The same is true with check security. If a thief sees a check with high levels of security, he is more likely to move on to an easier target. However, if he believes the reward is huge, he will find a way to hack that check. There is no security measure that can guarantee your check information is 100% secure. It is important that you regularly reconcile your bank account with your record of transactions to mitigate the impact of any potential breach.
Going back to the example of home security, you can buy and install the fanciest, most elaborate security system available, but it will do you not good if you forget to turn it on when you leave the house. Similarly, most check security features only work when a bank teller actually checks to confirm those safeguards are present and functioning. Every check Nelco supplies has a padlock icon on the front of the check. This is a visual reminder to the teller to turn the check over and look at the characteristics on the check to confirm that it is legitimate.
So how can you deter fraud? In the next two posts, we will talk about some common security features that guard against two primary forms of fraud: copying and altering.